On behalf of the Alliance for Integrity in Medicare (AIM), a coalition committed to ending the practice of inappropriate physician self-referral in Medicare, we recognize the challenges you face in making significant reductions in government spending. As the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction identifies ways to reach the benchmarks set forth by the Budget Control Act of 2011, we urge you to explore the savings that could be generated from closing the Medicare physician self-referral loophole.

The undersigned organizations, representing thousands of health professionals in the fields of advanced diagnostic imaging, anatomic pathology, physical therapy, and radiation therapy, are extremely concerned that misapplication of the in-office ancillary services (IOAS) exception to the physician self-referral law results in increased spending, unnecessary overutilization of services, and could also lead to compromised patient choice and care.

AIM strongly supports efforts to rein in inappropriate spending in the Medicare program to sustain the program for current and future beneficiaries. We are confident that closing the self-referral loophole for the services noted above, while preserving the ability for truly integrated multi-specialty practices to continue providing services through the exception, will create savings for the Medicare program. More specifically, the savings are achieved through a reduction in inappropriate utilization of diagnostic tests, and in some cases, follow-up treatments. We believe a legislative remedy is needed and enclose draft language for your review.

We would appreciate the opportunity to discuss this issue and its potential savings in greater detail. For further information, please contact Dave Adler, ASTRO’s director of government relations, at (703) 839-7362.

Thank you in advance for your consideration.

Sincerely,

The Alliance for Integrity in Medicare

American Clinical Laboratory Association American College of Radiology American Physical Therapy Association American Society for Clinical Pathology American Society for Radiation Oncology Association for Quality Imaging College of American Pathologists Radiology Business Management Association